//------------------------------// // 41. Survivors // Story: Never Alone // by JeSuisLaPorte //------------------------------// Beeping, what a familiar sound. Olive’s heard it for entire days, incessantly pestering her about her pitiful conditions. Now, it’s been more than two weeks since they’ve ominously beeped. As the filly opened her eyes, the sight of an hospital room greeted her. What happened? Why is she back here? Her mind didn’t have time to catch up just yet, startling the pink unicorn as her eyes darted around the room, terrified.  “Howdy, sugar cube. How’re ya feelin’?”  Her little pink hooves touched the warm fur of a bigger orange hoof. Calmed by the soothing voice of Applejack, Olive’s breath slowed. She turned to face her worried mother. “M... Mommy. Wh-Why are we...”  Her mind began to catch up with her body. Olive realised something was wrong with her right eye. It was covered in something. Bandages, of course. She touched it as worry overtook her. The filly looked at her body, noticing it was covered in bloodied bandages. Her breaths accelerated, almost to the point of shrieking.  “Hey, hey; don’t get worked up. Everythin’s fine, we’re all okay.” Applejack hushed, caressing the filly’s face. “How’s yer eye doin’?”  Olive opened her right eye behind her bandage, breathing a sigh of relief. It was still there, still working. “I-I think it’s good. It doesn’t hurt, I mean.”  Applejack smiled. “That’s great. If it hadn’t been fer ya, things woulda been a lot worse with that stallion.”  Memories of the storm flashed by in rapid fire. Sweetie Belle holding her tightly, Strong Hoof breaking through the school, Cheerilee being crushed under the giant’s hoof and lastly, her anger. Anger, it still lingered long after the stallion was defeated, but... Olive wished that more had been done about him.  Her tail waggled nervously, unsure if she even wanted to say it out loud.  “Olive, what’s wrong?”  Olive avoided the concerned gaze of her mother, ashamed and afraid. “I, uh... Wh-What happened to Mist-Strong Hoof? Is he dead?”  “Nah, not from what Ah’ve ‘eard. He was sent to Canterlot with ta others.” Applejack noticed the filly seemed almost... disappointed? It was odd of her to react this way. “Olive, wha-”  “I’m still so angry.” Olive croaked, her voice raising with each word. “I wanted to kill him! I wanted to hear he was dead for what he did to- for everything!” Her eyes watered as she grasped her mother’s hoof. “I’m a monster. I killed his friends and now, I want him dead.” She raised her head, her pupils turning to pinpricks. “I’m scared, mommy. A-Am I a bad pony?”  Applejack’s eyes trembled, her voice hitched as she answered as honestly as she could. “Yer not a monster, ‘kay? Ya’ll never be as bad as them. Ah understand why yer angry and it’s okay to be angry at other ponies. Yer still just a filly, ya ‘ave a lot of things to learn. Ah’ll help ya control yer anger if that’s what ya want. Just, promise me ya won’t kill anypony ever again.”    “I don’t want to become a monster. I-I want to be a good pony.” Olive slid in the mare’s hoof, holding desperately onto it. “I don’t know why I don’t feel safe. H-He's gone, right? H-He can’t hurt us anymore!”  Applejack caressed the filly’s mane, lifting the little one’s head so they could see eye-to-eye. “It’ll be okay, as long as we’ve got each other; we’ll be fine.”  “But I’m tired of feeling bad! I just want to be happy like my friends!” Olive cried out. “They’re also having bad things happen to them but they’re still happy. I just... struggle to keep a smile because I’m scared. I can’t get over it.”  “Hey, Ah’m scared too, sugar cube. Really scared.” The orange mare hitched; her voice sounded rather weak to the filly.  Surprised, Olive looked her in the eye. “Wh-Why are you scared, mommy?”  Applejack teared up. “Ah thought ya were gonna die. When Ah saw ya turn back, Ah...” She swallowed a lump in her throat, her vision blurry. “Ah thought it was over fer good this time. It was even worse than l-last time.” Her emotions overtook her, and she burst into tears. “Ah’m sorry...”  “Mommy, don’t cry!” Olive begged, tugging on her mother’s chest. “Don’t cry!” Seeing this wasn’t working, the little filly nuzzled her mother like a cat trying to cheer up their owner. She brushed against the mare’s chest repeatedly, her eyes closed as to not tear up herself.  Sobs then turned into laughter as Aj wiped her tears so she could look at her precious daughter. “Yer too good for me, sugar cube.”  “No, you’re too good for-”  Applejack lowered her head and gently kissed the filly on her forehead, smiling thankfully.  Olive took a moment to sink in the kiss, soothed by her mother’s love. Then her heart called for action as she painstakingly lifted herself to reach Aj’s face and adorably dropped a kiss on her cheek, smiling innocently as she pulled back.    Watching her, a new feeling made itself known in Applejack’s heart, a feeling she’s never had before when she looked at Olive, pride. Witnessing the filly fight back against seemingly impossible odd was inspiring to her, it was the move that got her to jump back into the fray and save her daughter. Thinking back to their first meeting, she was always impressed by how much the unicorn tried to find joy in the littlest things be it hearing stories about the mare’s adventures, playing with a simple stick fueled only by her imagination and by getting a bully to like her. It moved her to tears.  Olive always pushed through hardships to find her smile, and she was proud of the little pony for it. A few weeks back, she took her in out of pity. A poor injured and lost filly with no family to take care of her. All alone in the world, Applejack couldn’t simply move on and return to her normal life, she had to help. At first, it was rather strange to hear Olive call her “mommy” but as the days went on, she got used to it.  Olive was her little pony, and she couldn’t have asked for a better filly.  It doesn’t matter how scared she was of Strong Hoof, of the storm, she’d fight another behemoth for Olive, for her daughter. Maybe that’s what it means to be a mother. Maybe she’s finally beginning to see her in a new light. Anyhow, Applejack only knew for sure that she’d never let anything harm the filly ever again. She deserved to be happy after all this.  Olive’s eyes widened, her smile faltering. “Mommy, why are you crying again? D-Did I do something wrong?”  Applejack chuckled, shaking her head as she pulled the filly in for a big hug. “Olive... yer everythin’ Ah hoped for. Even better, Ah’d say. Yer mah daughter, whether ya have an apple for a cutie mark or not.”  Cradled by the mare’s warm love, Olive closed her eyes and returned the gesture. “And I don’t care that we’re not related. You’re my mommy, the best one in all Equestria.”  ...  “Mommy?”  “Yeah, sugar cube?”  “Am I stupid for crying all the time?”  “No, no it’s not stupid to cry. It makes ya feel better if ya let yer emotions out. Don’t keep them bottled up.”  “S-So I’m not stupid?”  “Yer not stupid, never were.”    A loud gasp quickly made them pull back. On the bed next to theirs, Twilight Sparkle awakened in a cold sweat. Distressed, she looked around, realising that she was in Ponyville General. Upon meeting Aj’s eyes, she breathed a sigh of relief.  “Ah s’pose ya didn’t have a good night sleep, same as me.”  Twilight stared at her bed, motionless. “Well, reality isn’t really that much better...”  Olive nuzzled her mother once more, sensing some stress in the mare. “Hey now, we’ve all pulled through. Ah’d say that’s a victory.”  Twilight kept on staring blankly, refusing to lift so much as an eye. “Aj, I don’t think we’ll be the only ones having nightmares.”  “We... We did what we could. L-Look on ta bright side, ta foals are all still there thanks to us.” The orange mare smiled weakly, that was indeed a victory, a bitter one mostly.  Twilight frowned. “Oh, these foals are going to have it rough for a while. If only I had fought better I-”  “Ya gave it yer all, and that’s all that matters.” Applejack finished. “Do ya remember what Luna told ya?”  The princess of friendship finally raised her head. “Y-Yeah, I suppose it won’t do much good to lament on my performance. You’re right, I did my best for them. That said, I’ll still try to do better next time.”  “’f course. Let’s hope it won’t be just us two next time.” The earth pony sighed. “Ah really thought Ah was a goner for a moment. If it hadn’t been for ya, Ah...” She looked down at her daughter, choosing not to finish her sentence. “Ah really can’t thank ya ‘nough, Twilight.”  The alicorn chuckled weakly. “If you can’t thank me enough, you should consider becoming my apprentice.”  “Well, it’s a mighty good thing Ah don’t ‘ave a dragon code or somethin’!” Applejack mused.  Olive rolled around in the mare’s tender hoof, relaxed by her warmth. As she stood on her side, her curious eyes glanced over Twilight’s injuries. Concern immediately arose. “Princess Twilight, are you okay?”  The lavender mare smiled. “I’m fine, Olive. Thanks for your concern.” She then lifted her eyes. “I’ve got to say, Aj, you really have a treasure on your hooves.”  “Ah was just thinkin’ that mahself.” Aj responded softly. “She’s mah little pony.”  Now that the initial shock of her awakening had passed, Twilight calmed down, done reflecting on the day prior. There was no use dwelling on the past anymore, all that mattered to her was that everypony made it out alive. No casualties, even for Strong Hoof. They were truly the luckiest ponies alive right now.  However, one thing always bugged the alicorn. Why were the Anarchists so determined to kill all royalties? What’s their plan, their motivation for causing this much chaos?  “Um, Applejack. Do you mind if I ask a few questions?”  “Shoot, Twilight. Ask away.”  Twilight inched closer to the edge of the bed, levitating a nearby pen and paper. “Why did Strong Hoof even come to Ponyville? Why was he the only one?”  Applejack cringed, the conversation she had with the behemoth resurfaced. It was unpleasant to rethink about all the things he said, the surprising amount of compassion and respect he had for her and her friends. “From what Ah remember, he wanted three thin’s. First:” She gazed down at Olive, then back at Twilight. “Ya can figure that one out. Second: he wanted all six of us dead, that or ta Elements of Harmony. He wanted a third thin’, but Ah don’t know what it was.”  Twilight narrowed her eyes. Could it be the griffon that sucked out my blood? “I believe it had something to do with me. He sent a griffon to steal some of my blood.”  Applejack didn’t respond to that, she was too busy fumbling her hooves, looking down at the adorable pink unicorn nuzzling her legs. “Before He attacked me, he, uh, talked to me ‘bout lotta thin’s. He revealed exactly why they were figthin’ us.”  Twilight’s ears perked, leaning closer to her friend. She was fully ready to scribble down absolutely everything. “Really?! What did he say?!”   “Uh, t-they wanna replace Celestia, not with a new prince or princess, but with democracy.”  Twilight blinked. “Democracy? Isn’t that what the ponies in Ponethen-”  “Yes, sugar cube, he mentioned it alright.” Waving a hoof, “He didn’t sound that evil when Ah spoke to ‘im. Ah, well... actually got ta impression that he genuinely wanted to do some good.”  “But what good pony would want to kill an innocent filly?” Twilight asked, snapping Olive out of her good time.  “I... did something really bad when I was angry. They all hate me for it.”  Applejack winced. “He didn’t hate ‘er for no reason. Not saying he was justified in wanting to kill Olive, but he had a clear motive. And no, Ah won’t let ya pester ‘er into saying it.” The mare’s hooves trembled. “Ah’m not really sure what to think of this anymore. Twilight, they’re not monsters like we believed. I-In some ways, they’re just like us. Ponies that want to be ta hero. N-Not just that, he also made some fair points, like with ta royal guard. Twilight... have ya ever thought why we dedicated only ta strongest stallions to protecting alicorns? Ta strongest ponies in all Equestria? M-Maybe all they want is for there to be less injustices.”  Her friend opened her mouth, but no words came. It took some time for her to process this. “T-Then why are they doing this? Why are they causing so much pain? Why can’t they just talk it out? Nopony has to suffer.”  Olive whined. “They love daddy. Everypony does. They always love to hear his voice.”  “Oh... I should have seen this coming.” Twilight muttered. “He does have a nice voice, albeit creepy sounding.”  “I don’t think I like daddy, but I always loved to hear him sing.” Olive admitted. “My daddy’s the best singer in Equestria.”  Applejack scoffed. “That’ll make ‘im better than Jolly Melody, and Ah don’t think that’s quite possible. Ta stallion was good in literally every genre possible!”  The little filly sluggishly stood up. “B-But my daddy IS Jolly Melody!”  “What?!” The two mares shouted. “Y-Ya never told me that before, sugar cube!”  Olive shrunk, hiding in Aj’s fur. “Sorry...”  “O-Oh, ya don’t ‘ave to be! Ya can take yer time, Ah don’t want to force ya to say anythin’ if yer not comfortable.”    “She didn’t tell you first? That’s odd...” A frail voice spoke out, catching the attention of the three hospitalised ponies. As they turned around, they noticed the last one was now wide awake. Cheerilee smiled weakly, her tired eyes begging her to close them. Her breaths were heavy and labored, every single movement costed a great deal of energy. As Olive leaned closer, she noticed the mare’s body was covered in a huge cast.  Flashes of yesterday flew through the filly’s mind. She saw Strong Hoof towering over her and the crushed body of her teacher.  “Oh, Cheerilee. You’re awake.” Twilight muttered.  “Yeah... I’m awake.” Cheerilee croaked, her smile fading away. “I’m just... surprised Olive hasn’t told you about Jolly Melody.”  “Ah didn’t know she told ya specifically.” Applejack said, surprised.  “Not me per say. The whole class.”  Applejack looked to her daughter for some clarification. “It was for a presentation about my family. I, uh, wanted to get some things off my chest. Y-You're still my favorite family!” Olive blurted out, panting.  Twilight Sparkle examined Cheerilee’s frail body, cringing inside. “So, um, h-how're you holding up?”  The cerise mare repositioned her head on her pillow and that alone made her wince in agony. Her back cried out in pain as she performed the littlest of task. “T-To be honest, it’s awful. I’m scared to move a muscle.”  “Oh dear, I’m so sorry.” Twilight mourned, distraught by the pitiful look in the teacher’s eyes. Cheerilee had lost the bright attitude that made her so fun to be around. It hurt so much to see her that way.  “I can’t lie, this might stick with me to the end.” she somberly admitted. “I-I think it’s going to be the cart for life.” The cerise mare got misty eyes as she spit out the tough truth, her voice turning to a mere whisper as fear overtook her. “I can’t feel my hind legs, Twilight. I can’t feel anything below my waist.”  “W-Who knows, maybe you’ll get the chance to trot again.” Twilight stuttered, hoping to brighten the mare’s mood. Her weak smile did little to help, sadly.  Cheerilee let a few tears leak through. “M-Maybe. I just... don’t want to see the doctor, Twilight. I’m not ready to face it.”  Watching the two speak, Applejack felt awful. Being a pony that made good use of her hind legs, she couldn’t imagine how bad it must feel to lose control of them. Just then, Olive tugged on her shoulder. “Mhm?”  “Mommy? Is this my fault?” Olive asked somberly, her voice riddled with guilt. “Strong Hoof crushed her because I was too scared to do anything.”  “Olive, Ah don’t know what yer father told ya, but ya can’t expect to do everythin’ to perfection. Yer just a little filly, nopony would blame ya for bein’ too scared to move. Sometimes, tragedies happen, and we can’t do anythin’ ‘bout it. That’s just how life is.” After hearing her mother’s answer, Olive’s mood lightened up. She could always look to her for answers, for wisdom. She was truly lucky to have a mother this caring and smart, one that won’t judge her too harshly for her shortcomings.  She was right, it’s unreasonable for her to assume she was responsible for what happened. Not every bad thing that happens is her fault. All she can do is try to help ponies that are in pain like she did that week. Hopefully, she can leave a mark deep enough on other ponies to inspire them to rise above their pain.  “... Do you want me to turn on the radio? It’ll help you think of something else.”  Cheerilee thought about Twilight’s proposition for a moment, then nodded. “Yes, please. I can’t stand to be left alone with my thoughts. I could really use some music.”  Pushing the power button, the alicorn rested on her pillow as the radio turned on, ready to be cradled by some nice music. A retro sounding song started playing, but everypony quickly recognised the singer.    My dear, we can reach for the stars!  To-ge-ther, under the moonlight, we’ll never have to worry.    “O-Oh!” Twilight gasped. She probably should have seen it coming. More Jolly Melody played on this radio. It didn’t take long for the little pink unicorn to cringe, seeking her mother for comfort. Cheerilee covered her ears, bitterness taking over her mind. “My bad. I’ll see if there’s a better channel for us.”  Switching to a different channel, another musician greeted their ears, one that was involved in much less controversy than Jolly Melody. It did wonders to improve the current mood of the room. What they all needed was some rest, and to get their minds off the storm. What happened in the storm was in the past, they just had to move on. “And Applejack, I swear I’ll talk to Celestia about your concerns. Maybe she’ll bring some changes in the bigger cities.”  The orange mare smiled gratefully. “Thanks, Twilight.”  Just then, the door opened, and two mares entered. Olive’s face lit up as she recognised the white one, “Miss Redheart!” she exclaimed, suddenly forgetting about the pain in her legs. Her tail waggled excitedly like a puppy seeing their master after a long day’s work.  The nurse did her best to put on a happy smile, but she clearly looked sad to see the filly back in Ponyville General Hospital so soon. “Hi, sweetie! Did you sleep well?” The second mare entered, albeit lagging behind Redheart. Olive also recognised her, it was nurse Snowheart, the one that took her in the bathroom and well... triggered a nasty explosion on accident. It was the filly’s fault, at least, that’s what the unicorn believed. If she hadn’t freaked out, the mare wouldn’t fear her.  “I-I did, I think. I didn’t have a bad dream.” The adorable pink unicorn answered, scratching her messy mane.  Redheart smiled, still careful not to bare her teeth. “Oh! What was it about?”  Olive blinked, struggling to remember much of her dream. “I dreamt of a stallion being on the moon. It was... strange, I didn’t want to be outside at night.”  The nurse bugged on the stallion part, deciding to ignore it for now. “Well, that’s a normal feeling for most ponies. It can be dangerous when it’s dark.” she explained in a cheery voice, opting to let out the professional tone just for the small pony.  “I know but... it felt like the stallion was watching me, and that’s why I didn’t want to go outside.” Olive said, sounding more confused by the word. Eventually she gave up on explaining how she felt, it was simply too difficult.  “I think I get it...” Nurse Redheart looked over her shoulder, wondering why her fellow nurse still hasn’t entered, and sighed. “If you’re too scared to do your work, you should get somepony else.”  “N-No, that’s alright!” Snowheart hastily responded. “I’ll just... check over there.” She pointed to Cheerilee, making her way to the tired patient.  Redheart, for her part, went to check on Olive. She had no reason to fear the little pony unlike Snowheart who may be slightly exaggerating. The affectionate filly was quick to jump on her, sharing some love. “It’s great to see you’re doing well! Hey, Applejack, how was it with her?”  The orange mare chuckled. “A lot better than Ah imagined. She’s surprisingly mature and certainly kind for a pony ‘er age! She got alon’ with most of ‘er classmates.”  “Wonderful!” Redheart clapped. “I’m happy to hear it.” From her position, she had a clear view of the window, and the snowy mess that had become Ponyville. Her smile faltered as she thought about the storm. So much snow... ponies could barely leave their home in such dense and tall snow. “Say, have you... noticed the awful weather by any chance?”  “What awful weathe-” Applejack froze in face of the tall snow. It nearly encompassed most of the window, barely giving her a view of the town outside. It couldn’t be winter already. It wasn’t planning to snow for a least another month. Was it just magic, or had the temperature already went sub-zero? “...W-What?”  Olive, however, was thrilled. “It’s snowy! Hearth’s Warming must be close!” For a pony that hasn’t lived on a farm all her life, she didn’t realise the numerous problems an early winter can cause. For her, it was all fun and games. She daydreamed of playing in the snow with her friends, building snowponies and placing down Hearth’s Warming decorations whilst her mother stared in horror at this unforeseen turn of event.   The apple trees, their roofs, the crops, the animals, everything on the farm wasn’t ready for this. Oh, how she wished she could just gallop out of this bed and help her family out there. Sadly, her injured body couldn’t spend this much energy.  “B-But we weren’t told it was gonna snow!” Aj shouted. The white coated nurse cringed, scratching the back of her head.  “I-I don’t think it was planned at all. One minute it was raining and the other, it was snowing. I don’t know what happened to the temperature, just that it dropped in an instant. We’re having an early winter this year...”  Twilight’s eyes widened. The answer was all too obvious. Who could have taken advantage of the storm but him, a pony that can unleash the fury of nature at will, one that had already called a storm before on his own. Under her breath, she muttered the name of the cursed stallion. “Anarchy...”      Cold, it was so cold in there. The blanket they offered wasn’t enough to deal with the frosty air brought upon by their master. Dreamcatcher wished the royal guards could have bothered to light a fire for them, but it would appear that not even royal prisoners get small favors.  It was a rather... bitter feeling for a victory. Such a killjoy. They had done it. They brought Anarchy and the Nightmare together. The source of power for Nightmare Moon. With it, Anarchy should be able to turn the tides of battle and bring them total victory. Everything was set in stone, so why was she nervous? Why was she doubting their future?  She trembled under her blanket, trying to survive the frost his ultimate ascension has brought. He assured them it was bound to happen, just a side effect of his transformation. Apparently, the side effects of the transformation are unique to everypony. Why was Anarchy’s a drop in temperature and unending frost was beyond her. All that mattered right now was to stay alive in this dark prison, fed only the minimum to survive, with no clear shot at freedom...  “H-Hey...” she reached out to her cellmate, a hardened mare that clearly took the grim situation better than her. “Do you think he’ll come back for us?”  “Hm?” The mare side eyed her, frowning. “Did I hear that right? You’re doubting the boss’s words.”  Dreamcatcher’s heart pounded, sensing some hostility. “N-No! That’s not it! I-I meant to say if he’s going to come back down. I mean... we have no idea what truly happened once he finished the ritual.”  The mare groaned. “He promised he’ll return from beyond to free us and finish the fight. We have no business in knowing the finer details. He knows what’s up, we don’t, let’s keep it at that.”  “Okay...” the pegasus said, her voice being but a whisper. The mare’s confidence at least brought some comfort to her, but she was still scared of the future. Moreover, she hasn’t received any news of Strong Hoof. Sent to fight the Elements of Harmony and a monster foal, she feared for the worst. Anarchy demanded a lot of him, demanded something that would have broken many ponies but hopefully not him.    “H-Holy shit. What the fuck is that thing?!”  Dreamcatcher jumped. The ground quaked, deafening hoofsteps broke the eerie silence of the cells. It was Strong Hoof! It had to be! The blue mare jumped out of her blanket and grabbed onto the bars, looking to the right. She waited in bathed breath, wondering why he was even here.  “That’s Strong Hoof from what the captain told me. The biggest and baddest Anarchists, behind their leader of course. It’s a good thing we finally have him.”  Hope soon vanished from the mare as a horrifying sight greeted her. A large burnt and bruised body, a jaw wrapped around in a cast and sad, defeated eyes. Strong Hoof lost and suffered immensely as a result. “Strong Hoof!” she croaked, pushing a hoof out for the giant.  The tall stallion noticed her but avoided her gaze out of shame. He kept his head low and weak. But even so, the guards feared him. They didn’t look at him like they did most ponies, they stared at him like he was a beast. They even dared to call him a thing. It broke the mare’s heart. The pony she loved the most, reduced to a soulless mess.  After a few grueling seconds, they whisked him away, pulling on the chain around his neck. And thus, her beloved was gone, taken to a faraway cell. Now, she was back to being alone in the dark with nothing but an uncaring mare for a companion, one that couldn’t fill the void Anarchy and Strong Hoof left in her heart. That night, she silently cried herself to sleep.